Truth Hurts

Part 5

      Willow left Angel's apartment and headed to school.  She and Angel had
stayed up the entire night, getting Spike settled in and agreeing on how
Spike would act while he was recuperating and Willow didn't even get time
for a twenty minute nap and she was exhausted.  She also didn't relish the
idea of dealing with Buffy and Xander.  Willow was so deep in thought,
trying to decide how she would react and what she would say when she saw the
two, that she didn't notice the red sports car that had pulled up beside her
until she heard the horn.  She jumped, startled, and was surprised to see
Cordelia.

      "Hey, Willow, want a ride?" The cheerleader asked.

      "What's the catch?" The hacker replied, suspicious of the girl who had
always taken so much pleasure in tormenting her for so long.

      "No catch," Cordelia said.  "Just thought we could talk."

      "About what?" Willow questioned as she opened the passenger door.

      "About you and a certain brooding vampire and his bleach blonde childe."

Willow became still at Cordelia's reference to Angel and Spike, her body
ramrod straight.  She looked over at the brunette, trying to discern her
motives for bringing the vampires up and exactly how much the girl knew.

"Come on and get in.  Don't want to be late for school, now do we?"  Willow
sat in the passenger seat, sighing as she realized that she would have to
explain what had happened between Buffy and Xander to someone who would
probably use that information to hurt her even more.

      "What do you want to know?" Cordelia shifted gears and Willow had to grab
onto the door handle as Cordelia sped away from the curb.

      "Let's start with what's up between you and Angel.  I thought he was all ga
ga over out little Slayer," Cordelia commented.  "Color me surprised to see
the two of you making out last night at the movies.  Does Buffy know that
her best friend is making out with the love of her life?"

      "She's too busy with Xander to notice anything I do," Willow stated
bluntly.  She was thankful that they were at a stop sign considering how
long Cordelia stared at her after her statement.

      "Buffy and Xander," she said, her voice showing signs of how that news had
hurt her.  Even though she and Xander fought in public, the two of them had
actually grown very close since they had found themselves trapped in Buffy's
basement and kissed.  Hearing that him and the Slayer were together meant
that he had been lying to her when he said that he cared for her, and she
hated liars.  "Bastard," she hissed.  Willow looked over, surprised at the
venom in Cordelia's voice.  She sounded as if she had been the one betrayed
and Willow had no idea why.

      "Okay," Willow drawled, "is there a particular reason why you think he's a
bastard, other than the whole hate/hate relationship the two of you have?
Not that I'm disagreeing with you on that point though."  The brunette
stayed quiet.  "Cordelia?"

      "It's a long story and one that I really don't want to get into," she
whispered.  There was something in the girl's voice that made Willow willing
to not pursue the subject at that moment.  Cordelia decided to get back to
the original topic of conversation.  "How did you and Angel hook up?  Is it
because of Buffy and Xander?  Some kind of revenge thing."

      "In a way," Willow said. "But not the revenge part.  The because of Buffy
and Xander part.  My parents went out of town over Spring Break and decided
to have the house painted.  I was supposed to stay with Buff, but when I got
to her house I saw her and Xander, well, you know."  Willow didn't feel the
need to elaborate.

      "Okay, but that still doesn't tell me how you ended up with Angel."

      "I still needed a place to stay and he was the only one I could think of,"
the red head explained, glad to be telling her story to someone else, even
if it was Cordelia.  "I've been there ever since.  And, as for the two of
us, it just kinda happened, but I'm glad it did.  I really care a lot for
him and he says he cares for me too."

      "And how did little miss likes to kill a lot take the news about the two of
you being together?"  Willow looked down at the books in her lap as Cordelia
turned into the school parking lot.

      "She doesn't know," Willow admitted.  "I haven't talked to her or Xander
since I saw the two of them together.  Been avoiding them, which is
relatively easy to do since they haven't even bothered to look for me since
I ran out."

      "I can understand wanting to avoid them, but I'm pretty sure that it won't
be so easy considering the three of you are in almost all of the same
classes," Cordelia stated flatly, causing Willow to sigh as she reached over
and opened the door.

      "I know and I have no idea what I should say to them or if I'll even be
able to say anything to them at all," Willow told the girl.  "They're my
best friends and they couldn't even tell me that they were together.  And I
know, even if she has moved on, Buffy still cares for Angel and that there
is a good chance that she won't be happy that the two of us are together."

      "What will you do if she makes you choose between the two of you.
Considering how selfish she is, she may just do that."  Cordelia and Willow
both got out of the car and headed into the school.

      "I don't want to lose her friendship, even if I am hurt that she didn't
tell me about Xander, but I'm not willing to give up Angel," Willow told the
cheerleader.  "I think I love him and he's done a lot for me.  He stood by
me when I didn't have anyone.  He's the best thing in my life right now and,
possibly, my only friend."

      Cordelia Chase looked at Willow and saw how she was trying to be strong
and hold in the tears that still came from thinking of Buffy and Xander and
did something that she never thought she would do.  The popular brunette put
her arm around the shy red head and squeezed her shoulder, offering her
support to the other girl.  "Not your only friend."  Willow looked at
Cordelia, once again surprised by her actions.  "Hey, don't look so
surprised.  Aren't I allowed to do the honorable things every once in a
while?"

      "Yeah, but usually there's something in it for you," Willow pointed out.

      Cordelia nodded her head.  "Fine, if it makes you feel better, let's just
say I just want to be there when Buffy finds out."

      "Finds out what?" A voice asked from behind Willow and Cordelia.  The two
girls turned to see Buffy and Xander standing there.  Cordelia grabbed
Willow's hand when she noticed Willow falter.  "Where have you been Willow?
We got worried when you took off and we couldn't find you."

      "Yeah, we looked for you everywhere," Xander added.

      "Obviously not everywhere since you didn't find me," Willow threw back at
her oldest friend, who backed up at the venom in her voice.

      "Whoa, Wills, no need to get hostile," Xander said.  "We were just worried,
that's all."

      "Well, as you can see, I'm fine so you don't have to worry about me
anymore."  Willow turned from the couple, unable to look at the two of them,
especially with the worried act that they were playing at.  Cordelia turned
with her and the two of them headed into the school, only to be stopped by
Buffy grabbing Willow's arm.

      "Come on, Willow, talk to us," Buffy pleaded, not happy with how the hacker
was acting.  The Slayer knew that Willow was upset about Buffy and Xander,
but she didn't think Willow should be that angry.  "I know we should have
told you about us, but we didn't want you to get hurt."

      "Good mover there, Buffy," Cordelia snorted.

      "This doesn't concern you Cordelia," Buffy bit back.

      "Willow's my friend and she's been hurt," Cordelia informed the blonde.
"So don't tell me that it doesn't concern me.  I'm not the ones that kept
secrets from her."  Buffy and Xander looked between Willow and Cordelia,
surprised to hear that they were friends.

      "Willow, is Cordelia the friend you stayed with?" Xander asked, realizing
that Cordelia knew about him and Buffy and that he had lied to her.  Willow
shook her head, tired of the fighting.

      "No, she just offered me a ride to school."

      "Then who are you staying with?" Buffy inquired.  Willow looked at her best
friend.

      "Angel.
 
 

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